Bookbinder construction



Feb. 23, 1937. SCHADE 2,071,766

BOOKBINDER CONSTRUCTION Filed March 23, 1954 Fig.1..

.E igE. Z

3 INVENTORI I ATTORNE S Patented Feb. 23, 1937 T E S pairs Si BGOKBKNDEEPATENT CONSTRUCTION Application March 23,

Claims.

The present invention is an improvement in the construction andarrangement for binding sheets of paper and the like into pad formation.It is particularly useful in making up blank books 5 or pads and will bedisclosed in that relation although the same structural arrangement ofparts may be used to bind maps, drawings, and other types of books wherehinged sheets are desired in pad form.

The kind of pad formation in the prior art to which my improvementsrelate, can be found in U. S. Patent #1,5l6,932 of 1924. A variation ofthat prior patented construction is shown. in English Patent #219,547 of1924. and another in U. S. Patent #1342326 of 1934.

Advantages in my structure over the prior art will be referred to inconnection with the accompanying drawing and description.

In the drawing Fig. 1 illustrates my invention applied to astenographers notebook shown as it lies open;

Fig. 2 shows the book open and with part of the leaves folded back onthe others;

Fig. 3 shows the book closed;

Fig. 4 is a partial section through the book at the line ofperforations;

Fig. 5 is a view like Fig. 4 but of a modified end construction; and

Fig. 6 is a modified detail.

In making up my improved book I punch the sheets to be bound with aseries of closely spaced holes I. Ateach end of the series I provideenlarged openings, preferably in the form of elongated slots 2. Holes lare spaced apart approximately the same distance as the distance betweencoils of the binding wire. And the end slots 2 are generally speakinglong enough to encompass two spaced holes in the preferred form.

That is, if the sheets were punched with the 40 spaced holes I and thelast two holes were joined by a slot, such slots 2 would be made toserve my purpose.

The helically coiled wire 3 with open ends as in the prior art isthreaded through the spaced holes I to join all the sheets of the padtogether.

The ends of the coiled wire 3 are then pushed back against the side ofthe next adjacent coil and preferably welded thereto as at 3' in Fig. 4.The last turn of the wire in this'arrangement starts a thread-like formof reduced pitch so as to bring the last two coils together for a jointmade as shown in the cylindrical surface of the wire and without anypart of the wire outside or inside such cylindrical surface. Thispermanently closes the ends of coil 3 and makes a perma- 1934, SerialNo. 716,951

ing the ends of the coiled wire 3 into several close- 1y adjacent turns3" of the same inside and outside diameter as the helical turns, as inFig. 5. In this form the elongated slots will be large enough toaccommodate the extra turns.

The advantages of the construction disclosed in contrast with the priorart are as follows: Considering the use of the helically coiled wire asa binder, it is apparent that as leaves are turned over in the book theywill shift transversely of the book. A 360-degree turn will shift theleaves the pitch distance of the helical coil or the distance betweenturns. This is apparent from the offset condition of the. leaves inFig. 1. This transverse shifting action as the leaves are turned hascaused considerable trouble with this type of binder. So far as I know,the prior art type of binder has always been made up with the plan ofinterchanging leaves as in a loose leaf binder. The ends of the coiledwire have been leftopen for this purpose. The shift of the leaves tendedto work the sheet off the end of the wire. Prior Patent #1,942,026 showsone attempt to avoid this defect. But the ends as constructed in thatpatent have atendency to cramp the sheets as they turn over. Myimprovement involves the plan of taking full advantage of the fact thatthis type of binder can be made at such low cost as to warrant throwingit away when the originally bound sheets are used. As long as this iscommercially feasible I convert the type of binder from a loose leaftype to a permanent type where the sheets will be assembled on thebinder at the factory and nowhere else. The elfect is to give all theadvantages in using the book of a loose leaf binder except theinterchangeability of leaves. There are many advantages in having theleaves in the book bound much looser than in the ordinary permanentlybound book. They will lieflatter and can be handled easier in a greatmany ways. So I have discarded the plan for the user of my binder to putnew sheets in the binder. Individual sheets in my permanently bound bookcan be removed but new sheets cannot be put in. By adopting this plan Ican make the particular type of binder that was formerly a loose leafbinder a permanent binder with greatly improved end construction. Thisconsists in the provision of a coil-closing ring at each end of thehelically coiled binder forming an integral part thereof and arrangingsuch rings one at each end so that they ride in end slots long enough tocompensate for the side shift when the leaves turn on the helix binder.The end construction then gives exactly the same freedom for the leavesto turn in the book as the helix does. There is no possibility of thesheets working off the ends of the binder or of cramping on the binder,no matter in what position the binder may be. And this is not true ofthe prior art. One of the principal features of my improved constructionis in the permanent closure of the ends of the wire cage and provisionfor making such closure work properly with the bound sheets.

My improvement makes a most effective book, of low cost, and presentsthis prior art type of sheet binder for the first time with a finishedappearance and without danger of the binder construction interferingwith the turning of the leaves.

Variations may be made in the construction shown. For example, theelongated holes 2 may be opened up at the top and outer side 2' toprovide notches rather than perforations. Such a variation will exposethe permanently closed end rings as closed ends of the binder cage.

I claim:

1. A book binder construction comprising a stack of sheets provided withsmall holes adjacent one edge and enlarged holes adjacent the corners ofthat edge and in line with the small holes, a binding wire coiled intoscrew thread form and threaded loosely through said holes, the last coilof said wire at each end being threaded through one of said enlargedholes, the end portions of said wire each making a turn of screw threadform of reduced pitch so as to give a closed coil at each end of thewire and with both coils threaded through the enlarged holes at therespective ends, each of said closed end coils being permanentlyfastened together by a joint where the respective ends of the wirecontact with an adjacent coil to make the closed end coils.

2. In a book binder construction of the type in which a single wire isthreaded through small openings at the edges of sheets to bind them, thecombination of sheets provided with a line of holes to receive the wireand with the end holes of said line being enlarged by substantially theamount necessary to encompass two spaced holes and a helically coiledwire threaded through said holes and with the last coil at each end ofthe wire closed up by joining the wire end to the adjacent coil withoutdeflection out of the cylindrical form defined by the coiled turns ofthe wire.

3. In a book binder construction of the type in which a, single binderwire is threaded through a row of holes at the back of the book, thecombination of the book sheets with the row of holes having the endholes elongated about the length of the spacing between the other holesand the binder wire helically coiled with its turns spaced to looselythread its way through said holes, the last turns at each end of saidwire being formed into a closed ring of the same diameter as theintermediate turns, the closed ring at each end of the binder beinglooped only through the elongated opening of the sheets at that endwhereby the binder may be closed at the ends and the sheets can bereadily turned on both the helical windings and the closed end rings ofthe binder construction.

4. The combination of a stack of loose sheets and a binder to hold thesheets together, said binder comprising a single piece of stiff wirehelically wound into cylindrical screw thread form of a diametersubstantially larger than the thickness of said stack of sheets, thescrew thread form at the end of the binder being reduced so as to jointhe last two turns of the wire at each end of the cylindrical form, theend portions of the wire being fastened to their adjacent turns to forma true cylindrical series of coils from one end of the binder to theother with closed coils at the ends and all having the same diameter,said sheets having a series of holes for loosely threading the binderbefore closing the ends, the end holes of said series being enlarged topermit the ends of the binder to be formed into closed rings which mayshift relative to the sheets as the latter turn on the helical coils.

5. The combination of a single piece wire binder formed of two closedrings spaced apart by a series of helical coils joining the rings andforming a cylindrical cage, said coils and rings having the same insideand outside diameter in all their parts, sheets of paper having a row ofperforations the end ones being elongated in the direction of the row ascompared to the intermediate perforations of the row engaged by thehelical coils and rings whereby the sheets can freely swing and turn onall parts of the binder.

JOHN SCHADE.

